Sam Taylor-Wood / Video Installation

Still Life, 2001

> 3 minute time lapse

> Dark and dull video, lifeless colour theme

> Biro pen next to display of fruit which remains untouched throughout video - why is it there?

Possible meanings:

> Fruit represents the body and pen represents the mind. The body will break down but we leave an imprint on the world once we are gone

> Comparison between nature and man made objects. Nature will decay but the man made object remains untouched and strong

> Could be promoting the message of recycling, man made objects don't decompose so we should take responsibility when disposing of them

A Little Death, 2002

> Time lapse decay of a rabbit

> Dark and dull theme

> As rabbit collapses, insects crawl all over it, feeding off the remains

> In "Still Life" there is a stationary object that is unaffected by the decomposition around it, and in "A Little Death" there is a piece of fruit that is perhaps a reflection of the pen in the previous video?

Possible Meanings:

> The title could relate to the fact that the video is actually showing how the insects are living thanks to the decomposing rabbit, they thrive off it's death

> Maybe the fact that we focus on the death rather than the life that has been lived / will continue to live thanks to this death

> Maybe a comparison between us humans and insects, we continue to eat meat when there is untouched fruit that is a renewable resource

These are time lapse and really weird! Sam Taylor-Wood sets up cameras to film decomposing objects for days, maybe even weeks or months. They are filmed using time lapse photography, so photos will be taken at set times, for example every 5 minutes or every hour maybe if the decomposition is particularly slow. It's kind of a bit gruesome to watch, especially the rabbit one! But it is really cool to watch too.